William and Elizabeth Oliver emigrated from Scotland, eventually settling McLaren Vale in 1841. Their homestead flourished, the sixth generation Olivers are one of the region's great winegrowing dynasties. For many years, they sold fruit to Penfolds, where it became one of the primary components to the mighty Grange. HJ is the ultra premium flagship Shiraz, purposefully crafted at the Boar's Rock wineworks. A vigorous wine offering immeasurable girth of fruit, great poise, elegance and the strength of character to evolve majestically.

The Parish property is a ten hectare vineyard dedicated to producing the finest Shiraz possible. The extra efforts spent in managing the property and training the vines pay a good dividend, achieving harvests of the most spectacular Shiraz every year. A bounty of small but intensely flavoured berries, displaying juicy flavours, piquant spice and the elegant tannins, are crafted into a rich and full bodied McLaren Vale, offering profound structure in support of a powerful concentration of fruit.

A generously flavoured accord of great McLaren Vale vineyards, Ben Rigg's Piebald Gully, Paxton's Gateway, Wright's Duckchase, Beal's Monapilla and Joch Bosworth's splendid Bradens site. Monapilla is at the base of Willunga foothills, Duckcase is located above Seaview's old holdings to the north of McLaren Vale, the Bradens property is further towards Willunga, originally an almond grove, it is one of Bosworth's most meritorious plantings.

Mr Riggs makes a perennially bespoke assemblage of great Shiraz vineyards, owner operated by McLaren Vale's most eminent growers, his very own Piebald Gully, Paxton's Gateway and the sensational Martins property. The auspicious sites are located on some of the most fortuitious terroirs in McLaren Vale, narrow planted for low yields and stimulated by cooling gully winds which drift down the Mount Lofty ranges. These are the ideal mesoclimes for Shiraz and have been a source of the most memorable vintages.

An assemblage of Mr Riggs wines up to ten years of age, enhanced by an older parcel of Grenache for lift and spice, finished off with a tot of fortified Shiraz from the prestigious Piebald Gully Vineyard, contributing subtle sweetness to a richly complex wine. Battle Axe is a tongue in cheek reference to dearest mother in law, she appears formidable with her powerful pink effervescence, ultimately soothing the palate with her generous nature and refined affability but beware the after punch of her dark fruityness and engaging depth of character.

A compilation of parcels Shiraz from McLaren Vale and Langhorne Creek, barrel fermented and matured in a high proportion of new American oak. Cherries and raspberry leap out of the glass, coconut and carob for palate weight, turkish delights, mocha and mint. The engaging and entertaining flavours of Miss Molly make her anything but shy, her fine effervescence releases the flavour of fresh berries, chocolate plummyness and liquorice allsorts enriching the palate. So beguiling and very, very fine, Miss Molly puts the sparkle in McLaren Vale Shiraz.

The most extravagant celebration of McLaren Vale Shiraz, crafted from a meticulous hand picking of fruit, grown to the resplendent Gateway vineyard at Seaview, fermented and matured within the opulence of exclusively new American oak. Raspberry richness and fully fleshed plum, a twist of the pepper mill and curls of cinnamon oak, the full spectrum of Shiraz flavours from cherries to chocolate, currants, mocha and spice. An outstanding articulation of balance and poise, the lingering, intensely berry compote finish takes Carnival of Love to where Shiraz excels.

Mollydooker own and operate the most spectacular vineyards, choice sites along the golden mile of McLaren Vale's sainted Seaview Ridge. The closely husbanded Mollydooker vines are sustainably managed and a true labour of love for the viticultural team, proprietors Sarah and Sparky have refused the temptations of enrichment to preserve the integrity of their peerless quality fruit. They have been thrice crowned with the prestigious Bushing King Award, claimed Australian Winemakers of Year and a breathtaking 99 Wine Advocate points.

A breathtaking 16% level of alcohol provides Blue Eyed Boy with a measure of mischief to ingratiate the most demanding and ribald bon vivant. A collation of parcels off a tally of elite sites at Coppermine Road, Long Gully Road and the Mollydooker estate vineyard. Barrel fermented and aged in a high proportion of new American oak. Viscous with luscious layers of berries and peppered plum, espresso and chocolate cream. Full bodied over a backbone of well defined tannins, as the wine fills the mouth and continues to evolve with every glass.

Every Shiraz grape grown by Mitolo is cultivated and nurtured with passion and zeal, sparing no effort or resource to ensure that the best of everything is brought together to construct wines of elegance, purity and power. Savitar is the flagship Mitolo Shiraz, a tightly structured wine produced by maestro Ben Glaetzer in very limited qualities. Savitar features heady aromas and a powerful yet elegant multi dimensional palate. Shiraz is sourced from a single superb site, the elite Lopresti Vineyard's Chinese Block in Willunga, at the southern end of McLaren Vale.

An exclusive assemblage of the most elite parcels, picked off a tally of the finest rows Shiraz on the Chinese and Sandra's blocks at Aldinga and Willunga. Remarkable for its opulence, seamlessness, linearity and textural aplomb, Marsican is defined by the richness of ripe black fruits, olive tapenade savouryness and fragrance of freshly milled tradewind spice. A long cool ferment and gentle press, before being treated to the luxury of completely new French oak for eighteen months, followed by a rigorous cull to determine the most outstanding barrels for inclusion into Marsican Shiraz.

Whether it's the care taken by Frank Mitolo in the vineyard, or the excellence of Ben Glaezter's skill at making icon wines, each edition of Mitolo is nurtured and developed with a zeal and passion that spares no effort to ensure that the best of everything is brought together to formulate wines of elegance, purity and power. Jester is matured in the same barrels that have been used for prior vintages of Mitolo's most auspicious editions of Shiraz. Jester is upfront and personable for early enjoyment, it over delivers in terms of quality and style.

From fruit grown to the Chinese Block on Lopresti vineyard in Willunga district at the southern end of McLaren Vale. Soils are heavy grey loam over sandstone intermixed with black Biscay clay, a hungry earth which naturally controls yield. The climate mirrors that of the Mediterranean, warm days and cool nights ensure even ripening and development of rich fruit flavours. GAM is opulent and robust, a Shiraz of great richness that's multilayered with complexity, it nevertheless retains a measure of finesse and the characteristic Mitolo softness.

From a single parcel of vine at the southern end of McLaren Vale near the seaside town of Willunga, paradoxically known to the vignerons as Sandra. Fruit is gently crushed and pumped over for ten days of ferment, followed by eighteen months in a selection of mostly seasoned French oak, aimed at preserving the feminity of a distinctly supple block of Shiraz. Prettily perfumed of ripe backcurrants, mintyness, espresso and plum, her moreish chocolate box flavours are beautifully balanced by crisp morello acidity and supported by grippy, savoury tannins.

Since 1979 Maxwell have built a reputation for producing hand made, rich and robust red wines that combine exquisite fruit quality with structure and finesse. Shiraz is a specialty and their superlative efforts have brought Maxwell much acclaim for their definitive McLaren Vale regionality and purity of expression. The shared sentiment around the Maxwell wineworks, is that life's too short to drink bad wine. A generously proportioned Shiraz with excellent depth of flavour, long, velvety tannins and splendid palate length.

Named for the labyrinthine conifer maze along old Ellen Street adjacent to the Maxwell wineworks, Minotaur is a McLaren Vale icon, treated to a minimalist old world vinification and two years repose in a selection of the finest French oak puncheons. Exquisitely perfumed with dark tarry fruit bouquets, cherries, cigar box and caravan spice, its voluminous palate continues to unravel layers of complexity as the wine breathes and evolves. Fewer than 200 dozen are ever vintaged, an immense Shiraz of power, purity and persistence.

Single block Shiraz from a parcel of Shiraz clone 1654, planted near the intersection of Olivers and Chalk Hill Roads at the very north of Maxwell vineyards. Deeply influenced by the unique alluvial grey brown loam soils over Tortachilla limestone, Eocene is treated to the luxury of two years age in a selection of the finest French oak hogsheads. Vibrant and animate, highly articulate of its single site provenance, generous with intense weight of fruit, the syrup blackberry, raspberry and plum flavours cascade over the length of opaque, bittersweet chocolate tannins.

Just between the southern estate boundary of Ellen Street and the Maxwell wineworks, a small vineyard of craggy, gnarled Shiraz vines planted 1953 yields a tiny harvest of the most concentrated Shiraz. Matured twenty months in a high proportion of new French and American oak hogsheads, Ellen Street's redolent nose of ripe blood plum, aniseed and vanilla presages a refined palate brimming with the trade spice complexities of old vine McLaren Vale, cinnamon and chocolates, blueberries and clove, all resolving on an expansive, elegant finish.

The enthusiastic team at Marius are focused purely on growing the best possible fruit and retaining the pick of the harvest, with a view to making the best possible wine from these choice grapes. Wines of integrity which can best define the character of Shiraz grown to a unique terroir. To let the vineyard speak.

One of Maglieri's great achievements has been a run of sensational successes at the London International Wine Challenge. Maglieri has twice beaten all comers, to be voted Best Shiraz of the competition. With the high quality of grapes from the estate vineyards, the emphasis during vinification is to preserve the quality of fruit. Maglieri fashions a moreish Shiraz wine exhibiting spiced blackberry, plum and liquorice characters, indulgent like a festive cake, framed by well integrated oak, supported by the most polished, fully compliant tannins.

Leconfield occupies some of the Coonawarra's richest Terra rosa over limestone soils, a composition that's idyllic for vintages of superior new world Shiraz. The aim is to craft a wine endowed with great palate depth and weight of fruit whilst retaining elegance, where oak complexes and enhances the fruit but is not allowed to dominate. Several components of Leconfield complete their fermentations in barrel while the balance is treated to extra time on skins before pressing and filling into the highest quality French oak for an extravagant, extended maturation.

Koltz, winner of the Small Vignerons Award, is a small fifty tonne winery located within the elite Blewitt Springs appellation of McLaren Vale. All wines are estate grown and crafted, the operation is very much hands on. Shiraz was the estate's first effort, produced in small volumes, from fruit grown to a small but very special block of vine. Characterized by blueberry and earth characters, elegant with velvety tannins and superb length. Extended maceration contributes to the complexity, the aim being to construct a Shiraz which reflects the excellence of site.

A vineyard of great historical import, Hillside was initially planted in 1892 with stock acquired from sites owned by the Thomas Hardy Wine Company. A redevelopment of the eastern slope at Hillside commenced on the centenary, transferring cuttings across from the hundred year old Kay Brothers Block 6. Hillside Shiraz is about as old fashioned in the Australian claret style of wine as you can get, crafted from intensely flavoured berries, hand picked off seminal vines, treated to a traditional, open fermentation and manual basket press.

Crafted from precious parcels of old vines Shiraz cropped at one or two tons per acre, vinified in a collection of ancient open top fermenters. In 1891 Herbert and Frederick Kay planted 30,000 Shiraz vine cuttings, originating from the Thomas Hardys McLaren Vale Tintara Vineyard. Tintara was planted in the 1850s by Dr A.C. Kelly who probably obtained the vine cuttings from his Trinity Vineyard at Morphett Vale. Dr Kelly drew his original planting material from the Busby collection, through sources in Europe and quite likely from other local viticulturalists circa 1842.

The establishment of Block 6 commenced in 1892, upon completion some six thousand vines grew on the fertile soils of Kay's Amery property. Of the original twelve acres only four remain today, approximately 2,000 vines. Up to vintage 1987 the dry grown bush vines were spread out rather haphazardly, pumpkin patch style. Most are original plantings, replacements have been made by layering from adjacent vines. The layering procedure has been used at Amery Vineyards since the 1890s, a slow but sure way of replacing a missing plant among the vines.

Outstanding Langtons Classification. In 1891 Herbert and Frederick Kay ordered 30,000 cuttings of Shiraz from the Thomas Hardy Tintara Vineyard. The original plantings were dry grown and pruned to bush vines, neglected over time they grew into something of a tangled mess, fondly referred to as the pumpkin patch. Today, Kay Brothers have returned to the precious Block 6 and take aim at a timeless representation of Australian Shiraz, rich, impenetrable and packed with flavour, fashioned from the fuit of vines with a provenance that's second to none.

Everything made at the Kay Brother wineworks gets a passage through the estate's famous eighty year old basket press, a gentle treatment which achieves exquisite palate softness. The unique expression of vintage is preserved each year by a delicate balance in the mix of new and prior use oak barrels. One of McLaren Vale's first vineyards, the Amery property was initially sown to seven acres of vine in the 1860s. The brothers Kay acquired the land in 1891, introducing plantings from Hardy's Tintara, four precious acres which remain productive to this day.

A redolent Shiraz wine with an abundance of soft tannins that's drinking beautifully. The major component is from the estate's McLaren Flat vineyards. The second instalment is sourced from good sites at Blewitt Springs and Seaview, with a smaller portion of early ripening, low yield fruit originating from a vineyard in the Sellicks sub region which is very close to the sea. They all combine beautifully to form a wine which offers rich aromas of spicy mulberry conserve followed by a smooth mix of black and red berry fruits on the middle and back palate.

Kangarilla is a main road in McLaren Vale which leads to a small village of the same name. The vineyards, located at the northern part of the foothills, ripen later than other parts resulting in cooler climate, aromatically spiced, dark berry driven wines with intense palate presence and soft velvety tannins. Kangarilla is vinified in a mix of traditional open fermenters, followed by an extended term in the pick of French and American oak barrels. Beautifully integrated fruit and smooth tannins, lingering finish of liquorice, chocolates and dark espresso coffee.

Ingoldby are one of McLaren Vale's most eminent winegrowing families. What they do, they do very well, achieving international acclaim ever since taking the decision to bottle fruit under their own label. The star in the crown of a curiously limited range of value packed wines by gifted growers who have been nurturing their vines for generations, Ingoldby Shiraz has claimed a swathe of wine show awards and amassed a breathtaking list of critical renown. For cohorts of great red wine who aspire to the smooth and seamless style of McLaren Vale Shiraz.

Selection of site was essential to the success of the Hugo property. The climate, soils and proximity of McLaren Flat to the coast are contributing factors in maintaining the quality each and every year. Colin Hugo established Shiraz vines on the family farm during the 1950s, John Hugo followed in his father's footsteps, assuming responsibility as steward of the vineyard throughout the 1970s, ultimately taking the initiative to retain the best grapes for his own estate label. The finest parcels of Hugo Shiraz are treated to an extended term of maturation in a selection of finely coopered American oak barrels.

The Hugo family property was a mixed farming enterprise, dairy and sheep stud, almonds and tomato, not to mention a paddock or two of grapevine for personal consumption. The first commercial vintage of Shiraz was in 1979 but a Reserve quality Shiraz was not considered for another twenty years. Limited yields from the oldest blocks are treated to an extravagant fermentation in completely new French and American oak barriques, after an inspection and barrel cull, the very finest lots are assembled into the McLaren Flat flagship Hugo Reserve Shiraz.

From an elite site between Seaview Ridge and Blewitt Springs in the McLaren Vale, cropping at a bit over two tonnes an acre. As a single vineyard wine, a limited quantity of Mad Hatter is made each year. Mad Hatter is not a reference to Alice in wonderland, rather it is the nickname Dean Hewitson's closest friends have called him for many years. And why mad? Anyone who has spent more than five minutes with Hewitson will surely be able to explain.

Tintara tastefully embraces the best of new age winemaking whilst artfully retaining and utilizing much of the original plant and techniques from Hardy's distant past. Tintara Shiraz is fashioned from premium fruit grown to some of the better vineyards across the valley. A delicious wine that's been hand crafted with a view to enhancing the fine quality, intensity and distinct qualities of McLaren Vale Shiraz, all carried on a balanced structure of pliant, juicy tannins, achieving a palate of measured opulence and refined persistence.

Tintara is a winery of two worlds. A living treasure house of tradition on the one hand, a testimony to new age winemaking on the other. Tintara Reserve is only ever produced in the best of years, vintage 2006 being the first release since the superlative 2003 edition. Sourced predominently from ancient McLaren Vale vines, well over a century old, Hardy's employ the original Tintara apparatus to hand craft some of Australia's most precious grapes into a rich Shiraz wine with a remarkably smooth palate, extraordinary complexity and conspicuously gentle tannins.

Oomoo was among the first of Thomas Hardy's great bestowments to the nascent Australian palate. In its day a rich and robust red wine, Oomoo has been reintroduced in commemoration of Hardy's third golden jubilee. This multi award winning Shiraz has been widely acclaimed as one of the great value red wine buys in Australia and abroad. Hardys take the pick of the crop from the best vineyards in McLaren Vale and set it aside for Oomoo, a Shiraz of reliability and abundance of ripe fruit flavours, stylishness and satisfying, savoury tannins.

A living legend of the Australian wine industry, Merrill Reserve has claimed Australia's most prestigious awards, including Jimmy Watson and Visy Great Australian Shiraz Challenge. Merrill Reserve is a compilation of his best wines, as selected from a vintage of small parcels which have been treated to an extended maturation. Merrill Reserve can be best described as voluptuous and seductive, laden with complex chocolatier flavours and tensile textures, beckoning and beguiling before revealing the stately structure within.

Take your pick from the estate cellars of Geoff Merrill Shiraz, richly aged two years in a selection of French and American oak hogsheads and puncheons, assemble into the essential meat and vegetable McLaren Vale style. Blood red, mulberry and currant spice, moccha and milled pepper throughout, a lick of menthol, the savouryness of leather, black olive and savoury smoked meats. Jacko's the drink to open and to breathe for service alongside your favourite recipe of red wine casserole, kipflers and shallot, dutch carrots and Jus.

Henley demands a sensory evaluation to identify the finest barrels of Geoff Merrill Shiraz. The choicest parcels are earmarked and set aside each year for a course of maturation in the finest French oak. After fifteen months, the stocks are sampled to identify a short list of the very best, refilled to oak for a further course of maturation into the eminent Geoff Merrill Reserve. The final cut of this elite cull represents a strictly limited edition of the most superlative Shiraz in all McLaren Vale, only ten barrels each vintage are worthy of bottling under the Henley moniker.

Perfect balance in wine cannot be manufactured, it occurs naturally. Gemtree achieves this elusive idyll. Uncut has distinguished itself throughout the vintages with Double Gold in San Fransisco, Blue Gold in Sydney and Silver Great Australian Shiraz Challenge. Hand selected from forty year old vines grown to the estate's Tatachilla Road Vineyard, Uncut Shiraz requires very little intervention. The synergy between fruit and oak, acid and tannin are seamless and sublime.